Riot announces promotions and new hires after first year under Allen's leadership

The PR agency Riot Communications has announced a raft of promotions and new hires within its campaigns team a year after coming under the leadership of new m.d. Caitlin Allen.

Emily Souders, who celebrated five years at Riot in August 2023, has been promoted to campaigns director. Souders launched the Read Hour initiative in the UK on behalf of Moomin Characters and has delivered numerous bestsellers for Riot clients. Following the change of leadership at Riot, she has stepped up to take the lead on several key accounts alongside fellow campaigns director James Douglas.

Niamh Houston, who joined Riot in August 2022, has been promoted to senior campaigns executive, delivering media coverage and influencer engagement for clients including the London Review of Books and CHEERIO Publishing.

Riot also welcomed three new members of staff in Sofia Saghir, who was appointed campaigns manager, Ruby Fitzgerald, hired as campaigns executive, and intern Jules Baretto. A book reviewer-turned-publicist, Saghir joins Riot following roles at HarperCollins, where she looked after authors including Mark Lawrence and Sally Page, and Midas, where she worked on campaigns for the London Book Fair and Bookshop.org.

Fitzgerald has moved from a role in the charity and education sector, having also freelanced for Margate Bookie Festival and volunteered for literary charity The Reading Corner. She has brought with her a background in social media and digital marketing. Meanwhile, Baretto has becomes the first to take up Riot’s new six-month internship programme, after recently graduating in Film and English from the University of Southampton.

The new hires follow a strong year for the agency, with highlights including the co-founding and launching of the Nero Book Awards and the delivery of a series of titles for clients, from Jeremy Deller’s Art is Magic (CHEERIO) to Susie Dent’s autumn titles Roots of Happiness (Puffin) and Interesting Stories about Curious Words (John Murray Press). 

Allen said: “It is so exciting to be making these new hires and promotions one year into our journey as Riot 2.0. It’s been a huge year in terms of work, from launching the Nero Book Awards – which have been so well received by the industry and the media – to getting to collaborate with some of the most brilliant writers, artists and illustrators out there. We’re so grateful to all the clients, contacts and partners who have worked with us in the past 12 months or so, and looking forward to another big year in 2024.”